A Voice From a Distant Star
by Aikora
Summary: At the end of Naruto's life he was ready to die. He closed his eyes, letting the sleep of death take him. Waking up Naruto found a girl carrying his battered form. She was scrawny, hungry, and cold. Just like himself. NarutoxKushina. Time travel.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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I never had a happy childhood; I didn't get to play around with everyone else. I know this one memory: I ran over to the swings I saw children play, smiling, they had great wide grins on their faces. When I got closer their parents would turn around, they were not very nice. Adults could be so cruel at times. I was only five at the time. I did not truly understand, maybe even now I do not get it. Life is like that, sometimes the simplest answers to our questions are right in front of us. We tend to ignore them, deny them perhaps.

I was so ignorant; I was not stupid, just a bit slow. How would you feel if you were the shortest child in your generation, starved, greasy, smelly, and disliked. I was hated, it hurt. It hurt so much. I read books when I was a kid; I learned to read because I had a lot of spare time. The Hokage gave me the basics, but I took up all the rest. I did the best I could with the words I knew which were not very much. I would like to think that's what makes me the man I am today, I did not give up. People lied to me, especially my academy teachers; it was not until Iruka Sensei, my long time friend and mentor, showed me that I could be something more. Slowly, I attempted to change my ways, have a better outlook on life.

At the time I could have done of two things, I could prank people, really get underneath their skin. Or I could have reciprocate my feelings, make them sad, make them angry, and make them feel what I feel. Make them wish they did not live in this village. It was tempting. Very much so. But that just was not me, I was a child, children do not have malice. Children are just that, they are kids. I am not ashamed to admit that when I was old enough to know what the word suicide meant that I had tried one or two forms of it.

But I was too scared to pull it through. I was a coward.

I was hurt, people hurt me. They made me feel ugly, made me feel unwanted. They ended up crushing who I was more than once, at some point I tried to tell myself "Date-bayo" I could do this, I could keep up this lifestyle. But that is just not right. I am not some superhuman. I am not a hero of justice. I was a simple kid; I could break like everyone else. After all that was the reason why I broke, they tore me up inside. By the time I had reached my early teenage hood things had gotten terribly wrong.

It just did not work out like I wanted to. Maybe in another world Uzumaki Naruto could be accepted by everyone in the planet, they would love him ,care for him. Perhaps he would have had a large family, a dozen children, maybe. I do not know. I did not even get a chance to have someone tell me they love me, it hurt. Many people will spend their lives never understand what it means to never be loved. For the most part they have their families, mother, father, siblings, etc. I would have settled for any. I did end up getting a God father; he was a pervert, a very vile person.

But I loved him.

Not the kind of love that is inappropriate. He had his faults, people are not perfect, I am living proof of that. I was not the best shinobi, I did not have any special fancy jutsu, I did not have any great bloodline. I had a lot of chakra, but no one showed me how to use it. I am sorry, I am rambling too much about myself. I have a question. If you can take a minute to answer please do. If you had one wish to travel to one place, at any time, just once: what would you wish that place to be?

If you were given a choice to turn back the hands of time where would you want that hand to land?

"_Naruto."_

I was not given a choice for where I wanted to land. It was forced out of me, my belly screamed. Blood tore from my very being. It ripped and garnered. How I wish this did not happen to me. I died screaming in agony, from the distance I could see the fox, even he pitied me. The fool. It was going to die and it was looking at me with sadness, its body turning into nothing. How ironic really. The Fourth sealed him to keep him from destroying the Village, now its going to be sealed into something to destroy the Earth. I was not angry at the Fourth. I let that go. The man paid for it with his life. What more could I do to him?

"_Naruto, gaki. Take it."_

"Take what? I have nothing left. I have given everything I have. What more do you want from me. Have I not done enough? I-." Then I paused I was not the most handsome person in the world. I did not want to die in a dramatic way. I was no hero. Let me be honest to myself.

"I-I am tired. I am very tired Kyubi. I don't mind if this is the end. People live. People die. I am going to join the latter," I whispered to it. I saw his body floating away. There was romantic violin music in the background. I know it was not really there. It was a delusion. I was making it for myself. If I die I wanted to end my life with something to remember that I was who I am. That I did not die like any common fool, I had dignity. Watching the creature rear back its head something was coming out.

A large ball, a very fast ball, spinning like a vortex.

"_Rasengan"_

And the world span.

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"Kushina what are doing with that boy, you should just leave him."

I heard a voice speak out. It was childish; a bit of a sneer was melded into it. It was a girl's voice, but one I had never heard before. My eyes felt heavy, droopy. It felt so cold; I believe I was shivering at that point. I tried to get up but it was not possible. Suddenly I felt something grasp me, gentle hands. They were so small too. Whoever it was carried me on a very delicate back.

Resting on the shoulder blades I finally opened my eyes.

In front of me was a very dirty red haired girl, from head to two she was covered in mud. She looked tired. Her expression was a bit bitter and strained. I could tell that she was not used to carrying heavy things or maybe someone not as heavy as me. What was worse was she was a child. A child. A child should not have been able to carry me. It is not possible; my weight would crush her very being. I took a sniff, I smelled the scent of the ocean, and the girl had an interesting smell. The mud though did not do her credit.

A thought surrounded me. I looked around and saw what I was, what my body had become.

My body had shrunk. That was the only way to explain it, I saw my hands that were wrapped around the girl's neck, they were so thin. The girl turned around, her blue eyes saw into my own, she had nice eyes. I stared at them for a second, perhaps longer. I am not entirely sure which one of us reacted first.

"Hi"

I took a moment to study her; she was much tanned for a girl. Her red hair contrasted a lot with her overall features. I have seen many girls in my life before, but I do not believe I have ever met someone that resembled her so much. She was very thin also, very short. She wore an orange shirt and, black shorts; on her back was a symbol that I was all too familiar with.

A spiral.

"Hi," I told the girl. What more could I say? It seems that she was helping me. My body was so numb, but as a person it was hard to not feel a bit ashamed being such a burden to her. I think I squeezed my small hands around her neck a bit tighter. She gave me a tighter grin, it seems I was a bit heavier than I thought.

"Do you want me to get off. I might be too heavy."

"That's alright."

"Are you sure."

She took a moment to respond, but it didn't look like she said no. I sighed and lay my head into her back, I think I felt numb at the time, maybe not, but I did not want to move. I looked around me, it was getting darker and the night was approaching. Glimpses of the moon shining. I could not move either way and it would not be so bad to get a ride here.

So I took a ride on her small back, while she carried me into the forest. I am not sure where I am. I do not know where I am going. Like a voice from a distant star, I travel. Whether someone will ever really hear me, whether the message I wanted people to see will ever be heard, its all relative, like gravity. Falling down, into the depths.

I closed mey eyes, my battered body couldn't take anymore. I let her carry me as I entered a new world.

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	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

AN: I loved your reviews. It was fascinating and insightful, thank you very much.

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"Do you mind if I ask where we are headed," I asked the red head. She was already looking both winded and weary. The people surrounding her did not look that much better off either. Some of them were looking at me with apprehension. Others though looked at me with surprise, and even fewer with pity. Everyone here had a haunted look about them. Dark lines and bloodshot pupils were around me, they looked hungry and battered.

I felt a splat of water touch the tip of my nose. I tilted by head up just a bit off the smaller girls' shoulder.

Looking at the sky I could see that it was not the best of days to travel. Clouds were already gathering in the sky, storm clouds. I had little doubt that it would rain soon. If she had to carry me in the rain I would rather limp, I could not walk just yet, there were limits that could not be breached, but I could at least ease her burden somewhat. She turned around to look at me again; once again I was startled to see that shade of blue in her eyes. People, those who did not hate me hold me in contempt, told me that my eyes were the most remarkable thing about me.

Eyes were never something I paid too much attention to; perhaps it was a subconscious bitter jealousy that I felt for the Uchiha and the Hyuga clan, at the amazing power and prestige that came with them. The Uchiha and the Hyuga , in all honesty, never did that much to me as a whole, but individual members were a different story all together. When I walked down the street some would look at me with regret, others with sadness, and fewer still with anger. I can't really tell you the exact proportion of Shinobi to Village population that held me at fault for being a "Human Sacrifce," but I know that when more than one person hates you, it's enough to make you feel pretty bad about yourself.

The girl looked at my eyes too, still walking she took a brief glance. I wonder what she saw in them. My eyes are blue, a very transparent shade of it. I can't say my eyes are just one shade, its hard to describe, but people tell me it's like the depths of the ocean, that it makes them feel comfortable looking at them. Tsunade, her eyes were brown. Jiraya, his eyes were black. Some would say those colors are just too plain, too simple, common even.

But I know better.

When I meet the Godaime's eyes I see myself reflected on someone who cares for me. I don't know how I can explain it, but when she looks at me it feels very warm. There are people in my life that I would never make eye contact with, for good reason of course, Itachi had a lot to do with it, but mostly because I did not want to see my reflection in their vision because I knew the image that appeared there was of me who they hated.

I met eye contact with Tsunade many times in my life, I loved to, call it my guilty pleasure. I wanted her to look at me, praise me, love me. But even that was selfish. She was the Godaime, she had limits too, she was not God. For a time I blamed her for many things that happened in my life, I said she held me back, that she never did enough for me. I blamed Sarutobi too, I blamed him for never telling me what was inside of me. I blamed Kekaishi, I blamed Sakura, I blamed everyone. Everyone! No one was spared in my streak to project my insecurities to people who probably did not deserve it.

Kami, I was an idiot.

Maybe that's what she saw, my flaws, my faults. I hope not, but hope is a four letter word. So is love. I didn't have either of them.

"Hey are you okay, for a minute you just kept staring out into the forest, I thought you spotted something. I looked where you were watching but nothing is there, do you feel sick?" she asked me with a bit of apprehension.

I snapped out of my thoughts, I let my memories lie for now. I can return to them later, they were mine after all, even if not all of them were images I wished to keep. I turned to face the girl, she was puffing, and her chest was heaving. Idiot, here I was thinking about demons that should lay dead and the scrawny girl was barely getting by trying to keep me on her back_. Way to go, hero_. She isn't a camel, and I do not want to be the last straw that kills her.

"I am alright, I was just thinking. I do that sometimes. It's strange isn't it?" I said putting on a smile that I hoped would reassure her. She slowly scowled at that, closed her eyes in thought. Then opened she them again, and gave me another of her charming grins. I liked it, it was not a large grin like mine, but it would do.

"I just thought of something just now, it's not strange."

I blinked, stared at her, and I blinked again. Something inside of me was happening; I looked at her to see if she was serious, her face was very plain I noticed, tanned, but very simple. I could tell that when she grew up she would have a very narrow and heart shaped feminine appearance but for now it looked very boyish.

I laughed, honest to goodness I laughed. Some of the hungry travelers looked at me with annoyance; they did not see what was so funny. Frankly, I do not think it was even that funny either, but I still laughed. Kushina looked at me puzzled, she must have thought I was strange, and maybe I was, I am not going to say I am normal. You don't grow up to be normal when your hero seals one of the _Great Beasts_ in your belly when you still have your umbilical cord attached.

I felt another two drops of rain fall into my head. I knew it. I should have expected this after all.

It was raining.

Kushina looked up at the sky too; drops hit her face, running down into her clothing. I felt a bit bad looking at her that way because they looked so worn out, I don't think the life of luxury has anything much do with her. She frowned and heaved my weight closer and caught up with the travelers running there. The water was trailing down on her, but I would like to think my body being somewhat near her back gave her some semblance of warmth, even if it came at a price.

Then she sneezed. On second thought, maybe it didn't.

After all "When it rains, it pours".

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"Are you sure you could walk, I do not mind carrying you," she told me. I already saw she did not have the energy to carry out that promise, but she was giving it her all. Cute kid. I resisted the urge to shuffle her hair, it was all wet anyway and I did not want to get anymore water on my body, I was soaked to the bone already.

I limped with her in the back of the group; they seemed to be approaching a large gate. These looked very familiar. I can't explain why, but the lands, this large forest; I know I may have been here before. The trees were native to my old home, but the way it was designed was something I have never seen before. In the Konoha I knew there was a large gap in between the forest and the trees, it was a result of the Kyubi attack, it had destroyed much of the forest in its wake to get the village for some unknown reason.

She held onto my shoulders while we got there, I am glad, she is such a helpful girl.

"We are almost there, this is it! Look sharp everyone," someone from the front called out. In my opinion that was a very bad way to tell people to get ready, everyone already look so messed, so bruised. But I think he was just trying to liven up the half dead travelers.

"C'mon lets hurry and get there," she said her cheery tempo already getting the better of me. I walked with her faster, even if my feet hurt. No use spoiling the little girl's mood, I can sacrifice a bit of pain. I am used to it.

When I got to the gates though I realized something, something that should have been made obvious a while ago.

"What's wrong, hey you alright there? What is wrong, your face is getting a bit pale. Something is happening to your eyes, you look, hey what is that. Hey! Say something would you?" I saw a small tanned hand in front of my face, but I did not pay attention. I am not sure what kind of expression I had at the time, call it shock, surprise or regret. I had a lot of feelings, there are so many things I need to sort out in my life but there are times that sorting is just not possible. The place I was looking at was a place I saw in a book long before, but that was a history book, and this picture should not be what it is now.

The rain continued to pour; I for once was ignoring it.

"Hey, please say something." Kushina's dirty numb face was only inches from my own, her ocean blue eyes looking worried.

My body shook, but I knew I had to gather my thoughts and pull myself back together. This could be an illusion, and yet it could not. Gengetsu is never this complex, Sharingan could pull it off, but this is just too much realism on the actual characters around me, they felt too alive. I took a whiff, this was a forest.

This was familiar; I had been here before for certain. Kushina's wet face was already asking me for something obscure but I zoned out of everything that was in the real world. I think she grabbed my shoulders, but it could have easily been my imagination, whether she shook me or not I do not know. I must have looked like a dead ghost, but maybe it was because the place in front of me had been destroyed a long time ago.

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	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

AN: Your reviews inspire me. It keeps me writing, quickly. Thank you.

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The guard in front of us were giving the group of immigrants a very hard time. Refugees, that's what you call people who travel great distances from homes that have been destroyed. They look to make a new start, it's not easy. Everyone around me was part of that category. Some of them were passing out some sheets to shelter us from the cold pour, I heard lightning in the background, and a small twitch from the two bodies pressed beside both sides of my waist. Kushina had a large sheet of wool draped around us. There was also another girl on my left who was also sharing it. She looked annoyed that I was there. Her hair was black, her body was very firm. I could see the delicate curves of womanhood already approaching her. She turned to face the guards, Anbu, who were interrogating each traveler before letting them pass into the large hidden village.

"How long do you think it's going to take before they let us in?" Kushina asked excitedly from beside me. I am not sure who she was addressing, me or the other girl.

"We are going to have to go last since we don't have any identification to prove who we are," the older girl mumbled. She shivered a bit and got closer to me, but not too close. I can already sense she did not trust me. There was a slight eye twitch when our skin touched and there is also that erratic heartbeat you can hear when someone comes close enough to your own body. These two are not super-ninja skills, anyone can decipher them. Her paranoia is a good thing. It's that kind of thinking that will keep someone alive in times of crisis.

What really bugged me was how cold it was getting, the winds picked up so quickly. Kushina's small arms could barely keep the sheet around us. For a little girl she really works hard. Even with the combined effort of the older brunette and me it was a hard task. I felt so pathetic, but at the very least I was providing body warmth to someone. That was indicated by how close the pair snuggled against me though I suppose any heat is better than none at all. If I were less mature I would have been a bit embarrassed at the how close the proximity the two preteens were to me, but I am mature.

I am old.

Not in age, but in mind.

Kushina sneezed again, a nostril of drool already pouring down her sun kissed face. Then she shivered.

I wrapped my arms around the shivering red-head and pulled her closer to me, it looks like she needed it. She looked up at me with those blue eyes, I met the stare. She looked hesitant, but then her eyes sparkled I think. She got closer and laid her body closer to my chest, sort of like a hug. Ironic, really. Here is a girl who does not even know my name and is already holding onto me from the bitter world. She trusts me, I think. Even people who I called friends, for years, did not trust me until they understood why I did what I did.

Like I said, adults can be very cruel, even if you knew the adults when they were but careless children playing Ninja in Shinobi Academy.

I stared through the cracks of the sheet, ignoring what I think was snoring that was coming from the tiny tanned bundle on my chest. It would not do well to get too attached to simple gestures of contact. I invested too many emotions on the kiss on the forehead Tsunade gave me, and look how bitter I turned out now.

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I never had a sister, or any siblings, but it was different holding her in my arms. It's been a while since I have protected anyone or at least anyone I cared for. I made a lot of promises in my life, I kept most of them. But many of them were very selfish promises now that I look back at them. Sakura made me keep a promise to return back my best friend or at least someone who I would like to think was a friend to me. Why did I do that?

Kami that was so evil. Sasuke was suffering from what looked like post traumatic stress disorder, even if no one would admit it, and I tried to bring him back by force.

He was mentally sick, mentally ill and look what I did.

I wanted Sakura to accept me, to love me, so I chased after someone who was hurting badly and tried to bring him back by force. If people saw the signs of psychosis on the boy they would have realized he needed to seek help, but in our world of Shinobi we think only the weak need therapy. We are so ignorant and calous it is no wonder that we hurt each other alonge the way. When I went after Sasuke I had good intentions but I know now that a large part of me just wanted people to like me. Maybe if I brought back Sasuke everything would be okay, I would get the girl and the village would like me. That was the truth.

Shit. I hate the cold hard truth, probably because its something none of us want to admit.

Women.

Even now I am hugging a shivering girl who is drooling on my yellow shirt. I am looking at the red haired girl who is dreaming lazily. Sweet dreams kid, your going to need it. I felt like such a pathetic looser. I am brooding again, something orphans do best. I spent a lot of my last moments doing that. I know its not healthy but that was really all I could do at the time. That or slit myself with a knife and but life is too short to waist on such petty matters.

Thunder shook in the background and the rain continued pouring. The gust almost blew away the sheet but I held onto it tight, the other girl nodded to me in appreciation. That's my heroic moment of today. Pathetic.

_Maybe I am just a loser._

Kushina sniffed, then shook. Tears were falling down her face as I held onto her as the weather grew worse. Dear Kami, I can already feel that she was going to ball her eyes out, cry more than the elements around us. I held onto her tight, burying her sobbing face into my small chest. It was disturbing, she was having nightmares. War does that to people I guess. I don't know what she is crying about, but it doesn't matter. I help people, that's what I do. Wonderful. I can feel more mucus coming from her sobbing. She is going to keep doing this. I knew it. I really am pathetic.

_Or maybe I am still just a sucker for girls who cry.  
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	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

AN: Thank you for your review. I know it's hard to review a story like this due to its nature.

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"Names, Miss, we are going to need some identification," the elder of the two guards said. Watching him from my place next to Kushina and the black haired girl I noticed that he was trying not to be intimidating. He was doing his best to keep his body language neutral. Being a ninja that's very difficult, most things to us are a threat and these types of societal integrations are often one of the most common ways assassination attempts are carried out.

He gave it his best shot.

That said he terrified the two girls and I found myself in the front of all of this. I met the man's eyes. They had some mirth in it and a bit of trepidation. It's good to see that he was taking this seriously, but not with brutal machinery. Even so those eyes looked very familiar, it was nice and black. Someone else had those kinds of eyes but then again many people have black pupils.

Although the gravity defying spikes of silver hair did remind me of my old sensei. Perhaps this was a relative of his. No. It was too early to assume that. For all I know this place was just a village that had a resemblance to the village I used to live in. The village before Pein came and tore it down. Ironic how Pein tore down countries like cardboard after living in a nation that was ripped apart by every other Shinobi village.

It just goes to show how many monsters live in this world and how many are a product of human nature.

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It had been a while now and still Kushina and the other girl did not give their first names, their clan titles that is. I could understand why though. It was actually a very smart and careful idea. Giving away vital information such as that would be suicide in times of war, an enemy could easily find out a lot about you just from that.

That's what I would like to assume.

But the reality is that they were two lone girls standing helpless in front of the large gates of the most Dominant village the world has ever seen. They had a right to be in awe and also be in fear. Kushina was about to say something but the other girl gave her a hard look, I never noticed before but the girl's eyes were also blue. They were not as colorful or lively as the tanned nymph but they were pretty in its own.

"Look, I would love to let you in. But we need to have proof of who you are. If you are from a Clan you must provide identification as to which one. If you are a civilian you must do the same. Even if you cannot prove it at the very least tell me your names," the silver haired Anbu said. Naruto noticed how his face looked very gaunt for a man so young. It was handsome and had a very sharp chin to it, sort of like Kakashi, but the man in front of him showed a combination of dominance and humility that the Ex-Anbu Captain never could do. I know that dominance and humility is an oxymoron, but that is what I see.

"Captain, we are going to have to close the gates soon, if they refuse to co operate we should just let them go. They are children, I understand that, but still orders are orders," one of the Anbu inside the village said. He wore a bear mask. Bear is a symbol for defense; he must be a guard type. I could understand by his posture that he seemed troubled by the three of us. Its not often three orphans wander into the gates in such troubling times without a shred of proof to show who they are.

Kushina looked about ready to say something again, but the other girl put a hand on her shoulder. Kushina looked about ready to cry from that, but put on that mask I saw her wear earlier. It was not as good as my own, but then she did not grow up as the 'Jinjuriki." God how I hate that word, it doesn't even sound human. I didn't want to look at the cold girl just then, she had carried me here, used up much of her energy, and now she was going to have to wait out the night in this terrible storm.

Its wasn't fair.

"Hatake-San, we have to close now!"

Kushina grabbed my hand, I think she was ready to leave. I looked down at her. I really hate seeing children suffer. They are so innocent. I know not all of them grow up to be perfect but Kami I can't live with myself if I don't do all that I can for a defenseless child. I do not know Kushina, I didn't meet her until today. But even so she looked like she could use the help and so be it she is going to get it!

I turned to face her, rotated my head just a bit up to see her face, she was not that much taller than me.

Her lips were turning blue, how could people do this to kids? At least give them some warm water. I got angry, my body started shaking a bit and the girl was still pulling me away even harder. Her blue eyes were tear streaked, or maybe it was just the rain. I don't know and I don't care. Kushina was grabbing my arms trying to get me away from the gates, while the other girl was grabbing Kushina's arm. I think she was caught in some kind of tug of war.

It just occurred to me how light she was despite her height because I barely budged from her pull. She must have been hungry. How many nights had she starved?

I turned my anger clouded eyes on the tall silver haired Captain in front of me. He did not seem like a bad person, but then none of us really see ourselves as bad and unconsciously most would like to think everyone around us is safe. But I know better.

My eyes must have done something because the Captain looked down at me hard. He was staring at me with what was just above neutrality and just above neutrality is hostile territory.

"Kid, did you not hear what my Kohai said?" His friendly handsome features were becoming a bit more ugly. Just because someone seems friendly and has a nice face does not mean they can't make a hateful, or in this case, hurtful expression. "You should go. Get out of here before others arrive, I am just doing my job. Nothing personal but if you don't leave with your two friends things could get bad. Very bad."

Two hungry starving girls and this man was telling me to get out. I already knew my reply.

"No."

"I am giving you a second warning." His hand was reaching unconciously into his katana. Thats another problem with being a ninja we tend to do that when want some one out of our way. It does not matter if its a violent psychopathic assasin or a kid barely in his teens. We go for our sword when we want results. Kisame could vouch for me, or he could if he wasn't dead.

"I am not leaving until you let them in"

"I think you misheard what I said. I do not have anything against you, kid, but we are living in dangerous times right now and we cannot afford to have any conflicts. We may not be as lenient as we would like to be. Your friends are not giving me the information I need, they are not cooperating. Besides, what makes you think I have the authority to let you in?"

"C'mon we should go!" little Kushina hissed. Once again I was struck by how light and fragile she must be if she could barely make a pull at me, how on earth did she carry me this far? I shook my head, water spraying down from it.

I saw the man's eyes. He was lying.

"I think you do have the authority to let them in. I think you are following orders and I understand that. But you can let us in, at least let them in. Not everyone can provide proof of who they are and you have let others in without even a glance, don't ask me how I know. We have been traveling for too long, we don't deserve this. This is not right. You can't treat people like this, we are human and I am going to take these two into the village," I said looking deep into the man's eyes. Try as he might he was only human, he did not like doing this either. He was trying to keep his village safe. I can respect that. Perhaps in another world ninja's would have let unknown children into their village, raised them to be weapons, and tell them they were citizens of said village without any hassle.

In the real world things are never that simple.

If you want entrance to any city, any place, any country, you are going to have to work for it. I did not let the silver-haired man finish his reply, grabbing the delicate hand of the girl I walked past him and his associate, into the open large gates. It was not the smartest thing to do, you don't have to tell me that. I could hear gasps and shocks from the other travelers who were ahead of us. They looked afraid, not of us, but for us. I did not turn around to see the two Anbu follow me, they were so tall.

I also did not turn around in time to feel a foot hit the back of my skull in a crack or hear the girl beside me scream.

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	5. Chapter 5

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Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

An: I do not make money out of this, reviews are enough. I notice those in who are in my alerts put me also in their favorite stories list. I hope that means I am doing something right! Thank you! Thank you! Visit my Profile to listen to the background noise of this fic.

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I don't react well to be being bullied, never did really. Call it a character flaw but handling stressful situations, without exploding into implosive or destructive violence, isn't something you will find in my resume. Ask Orichimaru, he can summarize how our thought provoking conversations turn out. They sound something like this: "I have Sasuke. He isn't coming back, you're weak Naruto."-and I detonate. You don't do that. You don't just come up to my face and tell me what to do. What I am. Or even who I am.

By the time I was old enough to defend myself, understand what I was fully capable of, people learned to keep their distance. For good reason too, I wouldn't want to get in the wrong side of myself either. I do things that I am not proud of, but at the time they seem like good ideas. I know. That makes little sense. That Anbu just got on my bad side.

_Like I said, I don't react well to stress. _

When I get mad, people get hurt.

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His foot barely registered that it was dislocated from his ankle. He didn't even get a chance to blink. He stumbled back in a combination of pain, shock, anger, and fury. It was all through his face in a fraction of a split second. Blood seeped out from where the twisted appendage had been turned. I heard gasps, shuffling of footsteps, and some whispers from the crowd in front of me. Their faces stemmed from afraid to absolute terror.

I'll be honest.

I don't know when my hand found its way to the back of my head. I don't know when it added enough torque into the junction where his foot met the ankle. I don't know when it applied enough pressure to separate the bone, but I don't care. If you strong arm me, attack me, you have it coming. Take that. The immigrants and some of the other people around us who were not Shinobi looked uncomfortable in all of this, shivering with their dirty and muddy clothing.

Join the club, I scare myself too. You're just lucky you don't have to live with me.

I heard someone unsheathe their sword. Don't ask me how I know, I just do. I have ears. Not fox ears, mind you. Kawaii.

My little friend was still paralyzed at the hostility we had just been introduced to. Oh joy.

…Crap.

How many times have I done something like this, how did everyone deal with me anyway? I am like a walking time bomb. I always blow up at the worst time. Just when I thought I couldn't do anything dumber, I do it again! Old habits die hard and this habit is going to kill me. But hey I am in trouble. I should just laugh it up, that's what I do right? I laugh at the face of adversity and injustice. Ha Ha.

No I don't.

That's what I used to do. That's what an insecure hyperactive kid would do. That's what someone who is trying to convince himself that nothing is wrong would do. Laughter is my crutch. If I wanted one I would go to a hospital. I don't like hospitals, didn't need them either. Now I just laugh when something has failed go kill me.

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I am not going to gloat and tell you it felt good to do that. Truthfully what I did was just a physical reaction to years of paranoia. I just hurt someone who was probably only going to knock me out and keep an intruder out of the village. I just disrespected a member of an Elite faction. Choices like these get people executed, not to mention I just put Kushina in danger. Retarded, seriously. What kind of retard does something like that without even knowing it?

Me.

But can you blame _me_?

The nine most elusive ninja of my time were out to murder, and not just in a kill-me-quick fashion. When they caught me they were going to do it slow, make it worth their while. My body had to react before my mind knew what was going on. I had to be dangerous. I had to be brutal. I-… Who am I trying to convince? They still caught me. They did their job, they got satisfaction.

Kushina's high pitched scream is deafening. The girl has a good set of lungs on her; I can hear the vibrations travel all the way into my skull. My brain is rattling. It is times like these that Shikamaru's analytical mind come in handy. He would have explained the situation; he is a talker, a people person. He can use his big head, he can think before he got off his lazy ass and acted.

But he isn't me and he certainly can't predict what everyone is going to do.

The silver-haired Captain was in front of me in an instant. Shunsin. Quicksilver. His black eyes hard, he was going to kill me. Not taking any chances it seems. Smart man, others can learn a lot from him. His sharp white katana was held high into the air, the samurai pose, dangerous. He must get the girls. A flash of lightning ignited the sky. It deafened the noise of the blade coming down to split my skull in half. My small hands were already reaching out to block it, I didn't even have a Kunai to block it with, but that didn't stop me.

"No please don't, it's not his fault. He attacked him first. Don't do this!"

Kushina's plea must have reached his ears. The girl's frightened beg allowed his swing to slow down just a fraction, I doubt you would even notice unless you saw the edge of that blade falling down towards your eyeballs, the force of death empowering it. I am man enough to admit that it scared me: my heart felt like it died ten times before the girl's voice broke through my fear. That shouldn't have happened. What's fear to me? I lived with it my whole life, I live in fear when I am asleep, hell as long as I breath that's going to be the oxygen that keeps me going.

It makes me who I am.

I couldn't directly block the sword, I am not that stupid, but I could stop the hand that was swinging it. A millimeter before the long white blade made contact with my face my left hand parried his hand towards it into the edge of my shoulder. You would think I am not strong enough to do that, but you would be wrong. At age 13 I stopped a gigantic snake from hurting my teammates, I did with a rusty kunai. Sure it boggles the mind and the laws of physics indicate that it doesn't make sense, but when has common sense stopped me from doing things I would regret later. Blame the villagers. I had bad role models. On second thought, I didn't even have that.

The sword got a good pound of flesh. The elastic skin tore, peeling right off to reveal the muscle underneath. This always happens, every battle something seems to stab or maim me.

Reminds me of the good old days with Zabuza and Kabuto.

At the time getting stabbed seemed a spectacular idea, until you realize you need blood to keep conscious. There is a reason I hyperventilated in the Chunin written exam. I lack understanding of the human body. I get cut, I blink and the cut goes away.

How was I supposed to know that didn't happen to normal people? Still it stung, the rain that was still splattering from the sky didn't allow for a clear slice. There were outright shouts from everyone around us, we attracted a crowd. It was getting louder. That's not a surprise, there were more civilian here than there are ninja. Goddamn civilians.

"What are you doing."

"He is just a child, let him go. He means you no harm."

"Mommy, _sniff_. I don't like what they are doing to the little boy, mommy make the bad men stop."

"Shhhh, it's alright, this will all be over."

"What kind of sick people do this to kids, yeah he attacked'em but the guard was going to kick him in the head. What the hell man!"

"Silence! This is Shinobi business, Sir. You play by our rules. Our laws. Our- don't give me that look! Put that down! Return to your trolley now, you have been warned!" the Bear masked Anbu spat, radiating killer intent with enough momentum to knock people off their feet. Welcome to the shameful side of Shinobi life.

Will wonders never cease?

Clearing my head as more blood drained from my body, damn it he got an artery, I stood my ground. Knees shaking. Joy. I could surrender. Yeah, right. As if. In the background I can hear more swords unsheathing. Holy Buddha or Kami, whoever is listening give me something to work with. I haven't been a bad person, honest.

My feet are still numb, I just realized that now. I almost laugh watching the girl sniff beside me, a harsh laugh. Knees shaking, it hurts but I'll step through.

"Kushina, we'll get through this." I don't know if she heard me. I am stronger, bigger, faster. I am indestructible. She will be protected. Wobbly feet, there is not much left to do. Walk. Walk across the Green line Naruto.

"Your shoulder…I can see the bones."

But, oh God, sometimes the Green Mile seems so long.

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Please Reveiw.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

AN: You guys are very supportive, it brings a tear to my eye. I have read a lot of your works and love most of the fics you guys make, keep up the great work!

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Like synchronized swimmers katanas are displayed around me, long blades of silver each identical to each other, drops of water running down sharply. I hear footsteps landing, docking from roof to roof. Splash. Splash. It's the middle of the night, people should be asleep but it's like there is party or something going on at this hour. More ants are coming, the ground rumbles as they come near. There are children crying in the carriages. I get a glimpse, little girls are sobbing. I am good at making girls cry aren't I? I should get an award for it. "And the Nobel Prize for Drama goes to.."

_Sometimes I am even ashamed of myself. What I wouldn't give to have Jiraiya here right now. He puts a smile on everyone's face without even trying._

"Your arm, oh kami, its not stopping. There is so much blood, so much. It has to hurt. It hurts. It hurts. Stop that, don't move, oh god…"

Frozen and bloodshot her face has a multitude of emotions that I don't want to decipher right now. It's hard to make out what she is saying in this pouring rain. It's even harder when I am not looking at her: I keep my eyes at the approaching silver giant whose slow rhythmic steps sound like asteroids pounding on the surface of the earth. He is getting closer. You'll have to excuse me. I am not even half his weight. I bet an ant thinks your foot steps are like Armageddon or some other metaphoric crap.

I can feel her hands press on the damaged muscle fibers. She puts pressure on it. Her worried eyes looks at me, I don't scream. It hurts, but I don't scream. She isn't squeamish. Liquid blood seeps out from between her fingers, I know she is crying. I know. But what can I do. Her blue eyes tear streaked in grief.

_Don't look at me, please. Please don't._

Its too late, we meet I contact.

_Sorry kid, I fucked up. I fucked up bad. You don't have to look at me like that. I know I am screwed, I am surrounded. I don't have a shurinkan, I don't have kunai, I don't even have those dango sticks Anko hordes. There are a lot of things I don't own, being poor helped me out in that respect, I couldn't really afford much of anything. _

They are here, all here. I can't see them, they are nearby. Things are going to go shit before it gets better. Get ready for it.

_It when retarded shit like this happens that you know you're in __Konohagakure no Sato__ the fucken "Village Hidden Among The Leaves."_

I pivoted to the left, put by arm around Kushina's waist, the good one, and leaped a good 5 meters away from the Kekaishi look- alike. Clean black Anbu uniform soaked in water, but he doesn't look bothered by it. His eyes narrowed, but I know he is faking it. People can fake intimidation after all, but others can see through it just as easily. I am one of those people. Hell, I can do both.

As we land the red-head's lungs start working full throttle. Shit, she looks awful.

"Kami, what have you done. Why did you do that, he didn't do anything to you Nothing! Nothing! He was just bringing me here. He didn't attack you, why-" Did I sound like that as a child? Sigh. It is not wonder no one took me seriously, so naïve. Well that and the Fox demon being sealed into the belly and all the lovely social isolation that came with it. Wasn't much of a people person that's for sure.

_Kid you don't want to know the truth. Children younger than you can slip a knife down a guards throat when his back is turned, he is doing what he thinks is right. Those who break the rules are trash as they say._

I rotated my shoulder blade near the gushing fountain of puss and red, formerly known as my shoulder. It is functional. It is going to hold, barely. I channel chakra into that arm. Nothing happens. There is a pause and a second later it comes out like an open damn, overloading my coils, it's not like that's never happened before. Kyuubi has my thanks for that. I gather enough impulse into the tips of my fingers to be ready for his sword. Increasing the force and density of Chakra, I make my chakra thinner, sharper, it is going to come off like blade. I don't make Chakra Scalpels for surgery, I am not Haruno Sakura.

I make death.

The next time he swings that white sword at me I am not going to be the one who is bleeding. He sees my shift in posture. My knees bent, head low. He reacts. He twists his wrist on the blade in a starter position. Like some evil baseball batter. The way he holds his sword perpendicular to the ground let me know he is gathering enough potential energy to for wide slash. The momentum from that would slice me clean in half, and probably the girl who's shaking hand I am holding.

"sniff sniff. A-a-a-a"

Oh god I hear open sobbing.

When did she start sobbing, one minute ago, two? I have made another girl cry. She is right next to me and it's only getting louder. The Captain looks at the crying girl, and then looks at me. Then looks at something in the distance, probably a superior, or anyone who as in charge. His eyes went back to where I was, standing in the mud.

Looks like he is ready talk to me.

"Don't do this. There are people here."

I am not happy to hear that. A second ago, most likely on reflex, he was ready to kill me. He almost did. He could have made it rain red, slaughtering me like a lamb. "What is stopping you now? You attacked me. I am unarmed, there isn't a kunai, shurinkan or wire on me. You lost the right for negotiations when you struck first."

His face frowned, it looked guilty. His eyes that were on the girl looked apologetic, but only for a second, long enough for me know what he was thinking. "That was a mistake. I shouldn't have done that. I reacted as if we were under attack, this is a Shinobi village. People are after us and we have had more than one incident today."

_I can tell._

"Try to see it from my point of view."

"I can see fine. 20/20 in fact. That's why I am on edge. Your justification still does not excuse you. If your sorry, then tell those Shinobi hiding around us to put down their shurinkan, I'll consider talking if you do that."

It wasn't easy keeping an eye on my surroundings while it rained rats and dogs. I say rats because other hidden Shinobi were here. Dogs=Shinobi too. Some on the rooftops, others on land, there were probably one or two in the sewers if Danzo had anything do with it. Fucking rats. I am not getting out of this without cuts. I take back my earlier statement.

At that moment I saw a blur. It was heading towards me. I flexed my arm, put chakra through it, put my fist over my head and swung it down like a hammer. Good news is: it cleaned the large shurinkan in half. Bad news is: the silver-haired Anbu was in my face, his fist reared back for a cross punch and Kunai held in a defensive position in another. Professional isn't he?

I tried to pull my hands up in time to block it. In a second my face was going to be pounded into the mud. His fist came closer, faster and faster. My hands felt like they were made of lead or something. I am not going to be able to block this one.

_This is going to hurt, but at least he doesn't think we are an assassination attempt. I hope. _

"Leave him alone!"

From my peripheral vision I saw Kushina leap in front of the man, pulling off a David and Goliath. She was screaming her lungs out holding one half of the shurinkan I cut earlier. She works fast doesn't she? She had her long red hair trailing behind in a dangerous cascade, like some cape. The Captain again paused a second, wet faced in confusion. She looked like a threat. Red means danger.

Holy shit, I forget to factor in one thing: Never underestimate an idiot with good intentions.

She just unintentionally portrayed evidence that we are assassins out for blood.

Before the shrapnel struck the face of the taller man I saw that he had already been replaced. There was not even a puff, I didn't blink so I didn't miss it. Kawamari is useful like that. This Anbu had a dragon mask. That's not a good sign. The man didn't even flinch: he pivoted on his heel, reared back his right arm, and punched down at Kushina, who was in mid-air with mass behind it. Lots of intense angular velocity, real quick.

Have you ever thrown an elastic band on the wall? You notice it bounces back right? Comes back far doesn't it?

His Fist alone broke maybe 3 or 4 ribs, I can't tell you the exact number. Before she made impact her blue eyes were already rolled halfway in the back of her head. I would love to have told you that she put up a good fight, but that's what happened. She hit the ground, maybe more ribs broke. Blood spewed up from her mouth, not much but enough to make a vertical stream. She bounced back up. I could tell her ankles were shattered.

I was speechless, there wasn't a sound. Not from me and not from anyone.

The Dragon masked Anbu must have realized the implications. Assassins don't break like that. They dodge and avoid. Genin get hit, pre-Genin get killed, this one didn't even know she committed unintentional suicide. He didn't move to finish her off but caught her midway while she was in the air. Holding her like a delicate baby, minus maybe 9 years and she would be one.

This all happened in a blink.

What can I say? What do you think I was going to do? I told you I don't react well to stress. He attacked an orphan, a child. You don't treat children that way, it's just not done. Adults are strong, with that strength they have responsibilities. People don't just go around wielding their power like a sledgehammer, I don't care what kind of day you have been having, you just don't do that.

I grit my teeth hard. Some of my fangs snapped.

You never, ever, hurt children in my presence. Never!

I go ballistic. There are a lot of issues there. I don't think things through. I just react. Ask Kankuro, ask Konohomaru. I don't care if you think that's a flaw, I am not Sai, I get emotional. I know for a fact this is my endearing quality. Hinata said so and even if people though she was crazy for thinking that I say "fuck all of them. Hinata rocks!" I said it before that when I get mad people get hurt. That's not all there is to know about me. Haku knows this better than anyone.

When I get vengeful, people die.

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Merry Christmas! This is my present to you!


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Sorry about the late update. But I am back! Beta work by Juopunumies! Holy shit the last time I posted something happened to the format! Grr!

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I am pushed through the rainy streets. The more I struggle the harder my capturers push me past the crowds of shivering people. I see fear laced on their faces, backing away as my bloody form gets near. Little children hide behind their parents as we walk past them, trying to make themselves as small as possible, invisible from my sight.

"Back! Back, all of you!" the Kakashi look alike screams. "Return to your homes! We are taking this assailant into custody."

Assailant? I suppose that would be the correct term, however I have a hard time remembering whom exactly I assaulted. Moment ago the world went red and when I found my conscious, my feet and hands where wrapped in shackles of metal and Chakra.

The pouring rain makes my hair stay down and it is hard to see anything with my wet blond fringes covering my eyes, I wonder if that makes me look guiltier of the crime that I cannot even remember.

The streets floors are especially slippery and without sandals -apparently they burned up- it is difficult to keep balance while my jailors continue to poke at me with their katana's, telling me to move faster. My feet slip at that moment, my face falling into the muddy floor.

"What did I say?!" the silver haired Captain yells. "Do not harm him! Hokage's orders!"

"We didn't do anything, sir, he just slipped." The Anbu who poked me with the sword backs away into the ring of Ninja who surround me. It is hard to get back up when the chains drag down my weight, but I manage. My throat wants to shout out that he was lying, that he poked me with a sword, but I couldn't.

All that came out was a croak.

"Get him up," the Captain shouts. "The longer we keep him here the more people we are going to attract -and someone clear the Genins- they don't need to see this!"

Genins? It's hard to tell who is in the crowd. My eyes peer up from the mud, searching for the Genin he speaks of; perhaps I would find a friend among them? My tired eyes look side to side through the whispering crowd for anyone I could get help from. Anyone who would be willing to lend aid to a wayward friend.

There, standing in the edge of the crowd with his Chunin vest, I find a friend. "Neji!" I shout, looking straight at him, my desperate eyes finding his own. He bristles and looks away, backing into the crowd. "Neji, help me!"

He continues to fall back into the crowd, slowly getting out of my sigh. "Neji, where are you going?! Something is wrong, what is going on? Neji! Don't walk away from me!" Tears build up as I see him abandoning me. My heart breaks with each step he takes back into the crowd.

Anger surges through my veins at his betrayal.

"TRAITOR! YOU CALL YOURSELF A FRIEND! COWARD!"

A smack to the back of my head is my reply. I turn to mouth off to the Anbu who does that, but I am unable to as strong hands reach down to grasp the collar of my shirt. The hands pull on the collar, forcing me to get up.

"Do not speak to the people here, boy," a familiar voice tells me. I turn to see the Captain I-Look-Like-Kakashi-san, angry at my outburst. "You are already marked for death with what you just pulled." He looks distinctly less friendly from our first meeting. "It didn't have to be this way; you didn't have to do that." Do what? I don't recall doing anything after the Anbu punched Kush-

No! Where is she! My legs suddenly feel like they could walk again, chains swivel around and jangle. My head turns here and there trying to make out where the girl went. This wasn't fair! It was my fault the girl was injured, where could they have taken her?

"Your friend is in the hospital," the Captain tells me. "Despite your injuries, that isn't where you are going." We continue to walk through the muddy streets, my bare feet scraping through the filth. "I hope they trained you to endure an interrogation, boy, if there is one village that does not take kindly to assassins." Here he paused for drama. "It's Konoha."

I try to roar, 'This isn't Konoha! Bastards! Give back the girl!' but all that comes out is a guttural sound that hurts my throat. I look at him; he must see the anger in my eyes because he smiles. "Oh? You thought we were just going to kill you? Eh, Biju?" His eyes crinkle into the sinister smiles Kakashi is known for; only, those eyes that were understanding moments ago help the promise of utter destruction. "No, child, I am sure there are many secrets that a Demon must hoard."

That did it; no one -absolutely no one- has the right to call me that! Not after all I have been through, all the friends I have lost, broken dreams and broken promises, a future that I knew was bound to fail. A fate worse than death, sealed in my belly while I lay kicking and crying in the battlefields.

What do they known about being a Human Sacrifice?

What do they know about Uzumaki Naruto?

He shifts away from my reach and hits me on the side of the face, but catches me before I fall again. "Temper, temper," he snarls. "Try and keep that down when the Hokage sees you." His face leans into my ear. "Boy if you want to come out of this with your arms and legs, you have better keep that rage of yours in check."

I don't talk to him for the rest of the trip as he leads me to the Hokage tower; I think I saw a Kiba in the crowd somewhere, I can't be sure with the rain, though I don't recall him having such long spiky hair, or having a feminine face, or riding a large black wolf. Didn't he ride a large white puppy?

I don't ask this one for help. I am in a strange place right now, and I have to think about my next action.

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"He doesn't look like much," something whispers in the dark. "Hard to believe he took down an entire troop."

I know that I am not surrounded by darkness, but with the blindfold they put on me, all I see is black. If I thought my body was restricted before, it is nothing in comparison for what I feel right now.

"But he did." The voice sounded grave. "And that is the problem." Muttering breaks out and I strain to try to hear what they have to say, there is small confidence listening to them talk about what I did when I myself don't recall doing it. They could have said I stabbed out my own eyes and called myself Itachi, who, even to this very day, eludes me as I have no idea of his true whereabouts.

"What problem?" another voice interrupts, this one with more coldness. "Execute him, or seal him. That is indeed the best solution." They discuss something, and someone shouts, but is quickly silence by the same cold voice. "Hatake says he covered himself in malevolent red Chakras[,2] , similar to those of a Biju, clearly he is a weapon of another Hidden Village."

"But, which one? As far as we know all the containers have been kept in check, and I do not recognize from any of the files who this one could be," the grave voice says.

I have enough of this. What kind of fools don't recognize Uzumaki Naruto, the Container of the Nine Tailed Beast? Every village on the planet knows what I look like. It is hard not to know my face when death and destruction paves my past and future. Wherever I go there is an endless stream of enemies.

Akatsuki, the Hidden Villages, my own Village; there isn't a place in this world left for me to run, but run I will and if I can make it out of here tonight that is what I plan to do. Like a cowardly thief making a dash with his stolen goods, I will speed, Godspeed.

"What have the Yamanaka found in his mind?" the grave voice asks.

"They aren't able to enter, not without hurting themselves." There was a pause. "The boy's mind is like a deathtrap, his memories contain so much blood and violence that it is difficult to decipher which memories are real and which are false. They see things there that are glimpses of a world that doesn't exist, covered in his self destructive desire to kill himself," the voice sneered. "Just like all Biju containers."

I snarl at those words. How dare they?! They have no right! No right at all! My memories are my own! I hold no possessions but the experiences I have taken with me, my pride and courage, shame and regret; those things belong to me, those secrets are ones that will die when my corpse lies buried in the Earth, they aren't things to be put on display and analyzed by Mind rapists!

"But…you haven't confirmed if he belongs to any village, have you?" the sour, yet friendlier voice said. I keep thinking that it sounds familiar, as if I heard it before. "Is he a rough Demon?"

More mutterings broke out, until someone answered. "The seal on his stomach looks similar to my own work." Ha! Impossible, the only one I know who can make something like mine is my Godfather. "However the arrangements and caricatures, as well as the Demon consuming seal leads me to believe that there was more than a single sacrifice involved in the the sealing process." Someone said something but I couldn't catch it, and the man continued. "What I conclude is: First: more than one person had to die to create his human sacrifice, possibly his mother and the sealer. Second: whoever made the seal wanted the Beast to die with him, which has succeed. Third: whoever sealed him was from Konoha."

"…This is most unsettling information," the grave voice speaks. "What are we to do with him? Are you sure he is from Konoha, Jiraiya?" I wonder at that moment if I heard him right. "Are you positive that this boy as well as the Seal Master who made him is of Konoha descent?"

"Well, I don't know about the boy, but the Seal Master most certainly is one of us." He sounds prideful. "I wish I could meet him, Sarutobi-sensei, he might teach me a few things here and there."

I lash out. Jiraiya? Sarutobi? Ha! They are dead; they have been dead for years! I want to kill these imposters! I want to make this dungeon rain red with their blood! Let me at them! If only I was free, if only I had the power to do to them what has been done to me. If only…

Instead, I am trapped, blind and mute, shackles keeping me imprisoned.

Story of my life, I suppose.

"Take off his blind fold; I believe we have to talk." Searing light burns my eyes when the cloth is pulled off me. "Oh dear, he doesn't like that. Orochimaru, would you dim the lights a bit, he has been like this for three days," says the grave elderly voice. "Kami knows his eyes aren't used to the light."

"We should keep it on; he could be dangerous." I catch a glimpse of that colder voice, the man is pale, with long hair, but that is all I can tell so far.

"Hmm, I don't see what harm the kid can do," the one who calls himself Jiraiya says. I see his outline, with short white hair cropping at his shoulders. "If anything, we're a bigger threat to him."

Everything seems blurry and my eyes hurt, but I try to keep them open. The older voice of the the man known as Sarutobi speaks to me. "Child, who are you?"

I try to say something, but all that comes out is, "u'rt."

They all stare at each other and the oldest of them snaps his fingers and someone comes into my cell with a flask in his hands. The person who comes in has a different feel, for one thing she is female and I don't feel the sense of danger from her as I do the others. She tips the flask into my mouth, gently letting the water flow down my tongue. Her scent makes me feel warm. My body shudders at her touch, as if it aches to have her fingers press on my skin.

"Tsunade, Is he okay?" Jiraiya asks. "What did you do?"

"Nothing. I just tilted his head, and he started shuddering."

"Enough of this," Sarutobi says, as my vision starts to sharpen. Just a bit more and I can see who it is I'm dealing with. "We need to know who he is."

It's almost here -I can almost see what they look like- wait for it Naruto; you can do this. My mouth opens and I try to speak, but there is still a lot of pain. They move closer to me and I can see their faces more clearly.

"What is he saying?" Sarutobi wonders. "Speak up child, who are you?"

I wonder who awaits me. These enemies that are about to come into focus; these imposters with names of those who I love and despite.

"Look at me, boy, what is your name."

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Please Review

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	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Beta work by Juopunumies. The story is going to get more depressing before it gets better. I try to keep the realism. For that I apologize, but there is a point.

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Munch munch.

I hear the sounds of someone eating something. I open my eyes again and find myself in the cell that I was at moments ago. Only difference is that I am no longer chained to the wall. Marks from the shackles are imprinted on my hands but they seem to fading, albeit very slowly; where is the fox? Didn't he grant instant healing or some crap?

Chew chew. I turn my head to look at where the noise is coming from. It doesn't take me long to find it, after all, it is only a few meters from where I am sleeping, I suppose. The figure is a tall teenager, white haired, big build. His hairstyle reminds me of the Fourth, if his hair wasn't pure whitish grey, that is. He tilts his head to the side, giving his droopy black eyes a comical sheen. "Hello," he says, in between chews of food. "I thought you would never wake up."

I open my mouth to tell him to mind his own business, but, again, I can't talk.

He senses this; he puts down the bag of chips he is eating and gets up from the ground. He puts his hand on the collar of his vest and starts getting rid of the crumbs that were left over, there are a lot, after all. He looks too familiar, oh right-

"Name's Jiraiya, in case you were wondering," he scratches his chin, which is odd because he doesn't have any hair on it. "But I guess you might know that, if you were listening to our conversation, that is." He snorts. "Before you fainted from Sensei's face, wasn't aware he was that ugly."

And there it was. I passed out when I discovered who it was that were talking about me.

Beyond anything my mind could possibly grasp, there before me, moments ago, were the closest people I have ever had in my life, as well as a hated enemy. The only thing I could have done when I saw them was roll my eyes to the back of my head and sleep.

I needed time to recuperate and take all this in, perhaps.

Now it seems like I'll have to deal with this problem. One-step at a time. "What…date…is…this?" I say each word with a pause, letting the muscles on my throat relax with each syllable.

He tilts his head to the other side as if he is observing me for fungus. He scratches his head. "Hmm, good question; it's October 8? Or October 12?-"

"No," I croak. "What…year is…this?"

"Oh, yeah that is easy, it's...48th Year of the Asuka Dynasty." He takes a moment to think. "Former Asuka Dynasty."

Crap.

My eyes widen when he tells me the year, either this is one elaborate illusions, or I am in the past.

Perhaps I should have sought professional help when I had the chance, I already had two good friends who were medic-nins, they could have checked for any lesion in my brain for any defects, seen if I had gone insane, or if the Kyuubi had done something that caused MPD, or schizo.

Kami knows I was mental as a child, who else would go after a lunatic like Sasuke?

"What's wrong?" teen Jiraiya asks me. "You don't look so hot." He shakes his head. "What am I saying? I probably wouldn't feel so great either after, well, what you have been through." He pulls the chip bag up to my face. "Here, eat something."

Greedily, I snatch it out of his grasp and guzzle down on the chips. Pieces of it scatter from my mouth as I chop down on it like a blender sawing food, some even hit Jiraiya in the face but the teen didn't seem to mind. He just sat down cross-legged on the floor, watching me.

"So, umm, I guess I am here to interrogate you," he says, his tone not sure if that was the right thing to say. "But, well, I have never done this to a kid before." He looks puzzled. "How old are you?"

"14," I wheeze.

"Ho, good one." He smiles. "Didn't lose your sense of humor did you?"

I shake my head. No, I lost it long time ago, you great big idiot. So lost is my sense of humor that I should make a shrine for my acts of comedy, it was a grave and terrible loss after all. Shame really, I had a career in stand up, at least a better shot at it at then Sasuke or Itachi. Though, it is funny as hell getting Sasuke to scream "Itachi!" by putting a picture of his brother in front of him.

"…the…girl…" I ask him softly, "…safe?"

He nods, smiling at me. "Safe as can be at these warring times, at least." He looks around to see if anyone is listening. "She has been asking about you, constantly." My ears keen in to this information. "She's pretty attached to you." I can understand that, I guess. "No I idea why though, from her explanation, she just found you dying on a curb somewhere."

True, seems about right. However, I do have this habit of making friends within a matter of moments so it isn't that surprising.

"In fact," he smiles, "Tsunade, the blond girl you met a while back, she is thinking of bringing her for a little visit." His face lost traces of humor. "She keeps crying; she hasn't stopped. She wants to know if you're alright."

"What...did…you...telll…her?"

"Oh you know, the usual," he says offhandedly. "He is in the other hospital room, with the best of care and all."

Naruto nodded. Standard lie; kids would eat it up. He was glad she wasn't sharing a cell with him.

"She…didn't believe us, though." He sighed. "Not by a long shot." He glares at me as if I did something vile or forbidden. "You did something to her, you must have, because she thinks you are in terrible pain."

I am in terrible pain; I have always been in terrible pain. What else is new? But, for someone to psychically empathize with me, that's a first.

I hear a creak in the background. "Hnn, guess Tsunade came a bit earlier than promised." He turns around to see the people who are standing in front my steel colored cage. "Huh, you actually brought her? Don't think Oro or Sensei would be too happy with you, Tsunade-chan-"

"Screw you, Jiraiya," the blonde-haired person replies. Her teeth are grinding against each other. "You better keep your end of the bargain." Her feisty glare does not remove the smile from the white haired teen. "Making me bring the girl here, yeesh, what are you thinking?"

The white haired teen shrugs. "Thought I'd try something new, you new," he says. He gets off the ground and moves out of my way, so I can get a closer look at the second person who is watching me outside of the cage.

Short red hair, shorter than even Gaara, with skin so tanned that it remind me of a girl named Karui I ran into while I escaped Cloud, wearing a hospital gown that seemed too large for her body, with bandages covering her face and arms. She stares at me with bloodshot blue eyes, looking at my form with guilt, and anger.

She sniffs a few times, when I look right at her. I don't exactly look like my top form right now. My clothes are barely holding together, there are large gashes on every visible part of my skin, and a chunk of my hair is missing.

Glad they didn't put a mirror in this room; it wouldn't probably break when I look at it. Like most things I know.

"Y-you used me," she sniffs. The red head looks hurt. Kushina stares at the floor, her hands clenched on both sides of her. Tsunade pats the girl on the shoulder, glaring at Jiraiya, as if it so this was his fault.

She shakes, and cries. "I trusted you!" she yells, still not looking at me. "You were nice to me." What exactly is going on?

"But," she lifts up her head, to stare at me, so many tears streaming down her tanned face, "this was a lie? You faked all of this didn't you?" She wrapped her arms around herself. "The injury; you knew that if you waited someone would bring you with them to Konoha." She sniffs, mucus coming back into her nose. "You pretend to be hurt."

Her eyes become fierce, rage pooling from them, Tsunade pats her on the shoulder to calm her down. "You faked being my friend." No, please, no, that isn't true! I try to tell her that, but my voice box is barely working.

"Then you got yourself into the village, using me as an excuse," she sobbed, putting her bandaged hands on her face. "And you attacked the Ninja here, I saw them in the hospital wing, you know."

"…No…" I wheeze. "…Believe me…"

"Err, Tsunade-chan, no offence but, umm, what kind of horseshit have you been feeding the girl?" Jiraiya questions, "When I asked you to bring her here. I didn't say to lie to her about the kid."

Tsunade shies her head away. She looked longingly at the red head. "She is a good girl, Jiraiya," she tells him. "She didn't do anything wrong." She pats the crying girl standing outside of my prison. "I didn't want to let her believe any of the boy's illusions. Kushina, that is her name, doesn't deserve that."

She then looks at me, anger that wasn't there before pierces through my flesh. "Men who play with the hearts of women should burn." Jiraiya winces, she turns away. "Even now the kid is lying to her, trying to deceive her into trusting him."

Jiraiya sighs; he looks helpless. "Did you know she has been begging to see him ever since she woke up? Kushina, had to have her ribs reconstructed, her coils reformed around her spine, and minor surgery for her concussion," she growls. She looks at me; I am trying to get up to walk up to them, but I fall again. "This is all your fault, Biju." She turns away, tugging the girls arm.

But she doesn't budge.

"I want to stay," she whispers. "I-I can't just leave him." Kushina looks sad; she apologizes to the tall blond. "Sorry."

Tsunade sighs. "Ten minutes." She taps her feet on the floor. "After that Snake and Monkey will be here to finish up Toad's job."

"Ribbit," Jiraiya says, chuckling at his joke, "I better hop to it."

He reaches for something in his pocket and pulls out a feather. Wow, I am real scared. He grabs me and puts the feather under my armpit, trying to get a laugh. My expression doesn't even change, I don't even giggle. "Huh, sure this would work."

It would, if most of my nerves weren't shot, you idiot.

"His receptors must not be working," Tsunade says. "I see now why you wanted me to bring Kushina-chan." He nods. "You can't torture him when he can hardly feel his body, I guess." Her lips curl up in distaste. "I still don't like this, she is innocent."

"Open the door," he says. He turns to the tanned girl in the hospital gown." Kushina, is that your name? You want to come in here." He pointed to my fallen form; I am still trying to get off the floor. "I don't think he'll bite."

The little girl doesn't say anything, but she slowly, and carefully, takes steps into my cell. She looks around it in distaste, smelling the scenting of blood and urine. "You kept him here all this week?" she asks. "He can barely walk," she says. She looks at my back; I know there a gaping wound there. "Oh, oh." She puts her hands to cover her eyes. "Didn't someone heal him?"

Jiraiya shakes his head. "We don't heal prisoners, red," he says, his muscles tense, no, he is going to lung! "We make them talk!"

He grabs the girl and pulls her to his body, pulling out a kunai to her neck. "We make them squeal!" He looks at me, who can barely talk, with Kushina looking shocked, kicking her feet in an effort to get away from his reach.

Her mouth is covered by his meaty hands; she bites down on the fingers and Jiraiya doesn't even pay attention to the injury.

All of that power that felt out of my reach returned to me just then. Seeing the fear in her eyes, as well as the weapon held to her throat made me scream in rage and defiance. My body slams into his gut, toppling him to the floor, and releasing the girl, who scampers out of the cell. "Leave her alone!"

I punch him in the face with my small fists, leaving a dent in his jaw. Before I could get the second one in, Tsunade comes inside and stops me. "That's enough!" She glares at the toad. "What're you trying to do?"

"Proving you wrong," he says, wiping the blood off his nostrils. "Didn't think he was an assassin."

"How exactly did you come to that conclusion?" she asks.

"Easy," he points to me, who is huffing and puffing, readying to blow their world apart if they touch her again. Kushina slowly steps back into my cage, but this time, with awe in her face. "Because…it isn't Konoha he wants to destroy." His feet stand straight up, showing off his tall form, towering over the attractive blond. "It's anyone that wants to hurt the girl."

Kushina is close enough for me to touch. I step towards her, but fall and she catches me. My head rests on her chest, my eyes feeling heavy. I feel tears fall on the side of my slashed cheek. Her longer arms hold me close, gently, soothingly, like a mothers lullaby.

"…You have always been a romantic," Tsunade replies. Still, her eyes soften when she sees the two of us. "Not everyone protecting a girl is a hero."

"True." He shrugs, watching as Kushina sinks to the ground, holding onto me, crying at my battered form. "But, when you see a story in the making," he pauses, pulling out a book, "you have to write it down."

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Please Review or Author Alert

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	9. Chapter 9

Beta work by Juopunumies

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"Don't let go," she says. My body presses against her, while she carries me, piggyback. Strange, I never did let Kakashi live it down when Gai did this for him; glad he can't see me now. "If you start slipping, give me a tap. This way I know to tilt forward."

Kushina is very considerate, though she did carry me here so she must know what she is doing. "You remember the address the white haired guy said?"

I shrug, then grunt, "Hokaido street." Konoha has this habit of naming its landmarks after ancient islands.

"Darn," she says. "Grr, I am so lost!" She looks both ways while trying to cross. It's dark outside, but that isn't the main problem. The issue is how to get to the apartment address in one piece. Already the girl tripped over a few times, giving me a few bruises here and there, then apologized, and then did it again. "Did we cross this intersection already?" I nod; she feels the tap on her back, which means 'yes.'

"Should have got a map," she grumbles. "He should have wrote how to get there, kami what a moron! How does he expect us to find the apartment when he just gives me the address." The red head sighs.

"…Left…turn left…" I tell her. Her small face turns around, looking quizzical.

"You sure?" she asks.

"…Left…"

Kushina gets a better grip on my legs and continues to walk, one foot at a time. Strong girl, she is. Too bad the hospital cut her hair shorter; girls love long hair, they pride it. My fingers play with the patches of hair around her ear.

"Yeah, I should get it evened out," she says, understanding the meaning behind my gesture. "I was considering getting short hair, you know, so it doesn't get in the way of fighting." She skips off the road and into the sidewalk. "Huh, where do we go from here?"

"…Forward."

She does that, this time trusting my judgment. "Anyway, long hair is a pain. Still, I wanted to try buns, though I doubt that's gonna happen now." Too bad, they would have looked good on her. "But then I'd have to use more shampoo."

True, but it still doesn't change the fact that buns would have suited her. Sharp features and a short hair cut aren't the best mix when someone wants to look pretty, though I have a feeling the girl doesn't care too much about looks to begin with, which isn't a bad thing.

The two of us walk in silence for the rest of the trip to the apartment.

"Sorry."

I don't reply to that, partly because I don't know what she should be sorry for. If anything, Uzumaki Naruto should be the one to apologize for all of this. It's a miracle that we weren't killed; if I was Hokage, I would have put me down.

Instead, the Seal Master, Jiraiya, decided to put some kind of seal on my neck and let the girl take me to her temporary home.

Too bad she didn't know how to get back from the Uchiha Military Cells.

Luckily I did, this particular apartment is a place I am more than familiar with, and there have been times in my early life where my pranks landed me a day in the holdings. "…Stop…left."

"Right." She nods. "The apartment is that way." The tanned girl doesn't ask me how I know the village so well, it's probably a question better left unanswered, I think she is afraid of what she might find out. I don't blame her.

"Home sweet home!" she says, pointing to medium sized apartment complex. "Ever seen a building so big before?"

Course I have. I used to live here, girl.

"You'll like my neighbor," she tells me, as she walks up the stairs. "He's a nice guy, real helpful."

I do not like the sound of that. There is no such thing as "nice guy" just a mangy beast in dormancy. We are all after one thing and one thing only, only, some of us are better at telling ourselves otherwise.

"You'll think he is great! The two of you will get along fine!" I doubt that. "He helped me move in, showed me around, everywhere." Okay, now I really hate him. "He might be back from a mission, I'll knock and you can say hi." Kami, girl, please just get me to your apartment so I can take a rest.

Too late, she is already walking up the steps, through a hallway, and in front of a door. I look at the name tag on the mail box; my stomach lurches.

"Just a minute, I'll be there," a preteen voice replies, the kid opens the door and I try not to punch him.

"Hey, Minato!" the girl says, bouncing on her toes. "Look who I got!"

Namikaze Minato looks at me. I look back. He takes two steps back in the hall when he sees my expression, then takes a step forward when Kushina grabs his hand and pulls him closer to us. "What the hell? What's got you so afraid?" My rising killer intent, probably; the boy in front of me isn't exactly my favorite person. It's no secret that Namikaze Minato would someday grow up to be a man known as the Yellow Flash, the Savior of Konoha, and ultimately, my Sealer, the one who condemned me to a life of misery.

When I get better, I am going to be giving this boy here a visit.

"N-nothing," he says, closing his mouth when I sneer at him from the girl's shoulder, Kushina doesn't see this of course. "Just surprised that is all." Damn right you are. "Didn't think he would be so…small." Big things come in small packages, blondie. "Come in, I have some tea."

"Nah, maybe next time." Kushina shrugs and takes a step back. "Just wanted to get some introductions out of the way, you know, you were asking about him and all." He was asking about little old me? I am curious what the future 4th Hokage wants to know about the local demon. Whatever it is, it can't be good.

The taller boy looks disappointed; he bounces back fast enough, however, with a dazzling smile, but his eyes look at my face distrustfully. Interesting, so the boy isn't as 'nice' as he seems, apparently his motives for helping her are less altruistic than what Kushina was lead to believe. "Okay, see you tomorrow, Kushina-san."

"Sure thing, Minato!" she says, waving back to him, and taking us further to the hall, to a door that I am sure my key fit into for many years. "Well, here it is; my apartment!"

No, Kushina, you mean to say my apartment. I lived in this exact place.

She opens the door and brings me to a couch, same couch I slept in, then brings me a glass of water, same foul tasting water I was used to. Seems like hydro in Konoha hasn't improved in the past two decades or so, not really that big of a shock I guess. "You're welcome to try anything in the fridge," she calls out from the kitchen. "I don't have much but if ya feel hungry, take it!"

Don't mind if I do, just got to catch some sleep first.

"Oi, don't sleep now!" she says. "I've almost got dinner ready!"

My eyes are wide awake just then, can't say no to a free meal. I eat in silence, listening to her day and how big the village is. There are parts in her story where I want to correct her, but find that is too much a bother to try.

Eventually she carries me to a bed, my old bed, and lays me there. I didn't protest, not one bit. I had to sleep. So tired.

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I wake up to find nothing but the color brown. Normally people would think this is a bad sign, but when your head happens to be on the chest of a somewhat busty 13/14 year old girl, it doesn't seem so bad. She smells nice enough, must have taken a shower before she went to sleep.

I look around and see her arms have wrapped around me, like I am some kind of teddy bear. This doesn't feel half bad, not bad at all. Shame these things don't last. Her cleavage isn't that great, thankfully for her, so I don't get to see much skin, just the top of her collarbone, which is still a huge score for someone like me.

She nuzzles on my neck and dribbles something about 'curry' in her sleep, I like the way she thinks, the girl has her priorities right. Reminds me of that one time I woke to hear Sakura giggle about Sasuke while her hands roamed around her chest, sure it gave me a boner at the time, but it's disturbing.

Her orange ramen pajamas look good on her, gives her a more 'natural girl' feel, none of that fake stuff. I am reluctant to part with her since she is so warm, but I have to get up to make breakfast, plus there is probably an Anbu watching me.

Getting too attached to her is a bad thing; I can't have that. Stepping off the bed, I look for some slippers, looks like there is only one pair and it belongs to the tomboy, don't think she'll mind if I use it. I am impressed how well they fit; we must have the same foot size. Either I have dainty feet, or the girl just has big floppers.

The morning light shines through a window, making the girl squirm. "Turn it off, mom." Hmm, this must be common for her, where she used to live, that is. I walk up to the window and close the blinds. As expected, I see someone standing on a nearby tree. He isn't exactly inconspicuous, but it works well enough in the dark.

"Oi, Kakashi-sensei!" He flinches, almost falling off the tree. I am in the past. Who knows, it could be him. There isn't a lot I know about Hatake Kakashi, who says he is 26? For all I know, he could just as easily be in his 40's, he wears a mask after all. "Nice day isn't it!"

For some reason the name 'Kakashi' gets him ruffled and he disappears. I start trying to sense him out, but no such luck, he must have left the area. Odd, if that is all it took to get rid of him I would have done that sooner.

Before I can make my way to the kitchen, I hear the distinct sound of knocks from the door. "Oi, Kushina-chan, get out here!" The voice sounds feminine, if barely. There is a raspy quality to it, like it had been chewing on something earlier. "Open up! We got shopping to do!"

It doesn't look like the girl is going to leave without a fight. My steps take me closer to the front door. I hesitate to open it, who knows what manner of beast stands behind it. Clutching at the knob, I decide to chance it; what is the worst that can happen?

As the door opens, something pounces on me and tackles me to the floor. It tries to wrestle me to the ground, but I manage to hold it off. It gives me a vicious swipe on my side and proceeds to keep me down. It takes me a moment to wrestle myself from under it. Now I am the one straddling my attacker.

The attacker doesn't give rest and grabs my hands and pushes me to the ground; in return my enemy kicks me on my side again. "Oh damn, you hit me there twice!" My body still isn't at its maximum yet; I need more rest. The person lunges at me one more time, but misses as I roll out of the way.

My attacker tries to get up again, but only manages to turn towards me before, I tackle her to the floor and straddle…her? "What the hell?" I ask.

"Hell is right!" she growls, her sharp teeth bared. "Who are you?!"

The girl is about the same age as Kushina, they even smell the same kind of. Spiky brown hair crowns the top of her head like a porcupine. I am glad I didn't prick myself touching that. Right below those brown shards are a set of canine black eyes, with fang shaped tattoos marking both sides of her olive face.

"Oi, stop staring and get off!" she snarls, this gives me a better view of her neck, which has what looks like a black dog collar wrapped around it. My eyes travel further down, getting a glimpse of double meshed tank top underneath a striped vest.

Looking down, I finally see a nice pair of curvy black shorts. Practical girl, she is. "I'll move," I tell her, "if you tell me who you are."

She smirks, feisty, I am loving her fanged smile. In a swift motion both her legs wrap around me, twist me onto the ground, and give her the straddle position. "Damn, should have seen that coming." I should be mad, but it just gives me a better view of her from below. I have to say I am liking it.

Her purple lips scowl. "Let's try this again," she says. The girl reaches into her shirt to to pull out a Kunai. There must be pouches in there, I think. "What are you doing in Kushina's room?" Her feral face inches to my own. Her weight pressing on my pelvis would have been stimulating had she not been so heavy, and her breath seems to be releasing some unconscious musk, that I am not even sure she is aware of.

Before her face could get any closer I make a move to trip her balance, and she falls face first onto me. Nice, she is developing it seems. As my arms try and grasp her hands-

"TSUME! WHAT THE HELL!" -the two of us are interrupted by the owner of this habitation.

The girl doesn't look happy. You know what they say about redheads. "I can explain, this isn't what it looks like," I tell her. However, my hands on the feral girls back, while her body pressed on me probably isn't helping my case.

"What is going on here?" says the voice of our neighbor. Great, just what I need.

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Add to Author Alert if you want to read my new NarutoTsunami story! Please Review. It will alert you right away. -Aikora


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